There´s always more than meets the eye. Whether as visitor, guests or locals we will miss these things if we don’t make an effort to see and pay attention. IFG tours provide tools that allow us to do just that.

Lavapies is now the trendiest neighborhood in Madrid. As one of the oldest, it has been through many different identities, before it´s current renaissance as the center for multicultural Madrid and vibrant space for many social and community projects dedicated to social change. We learned about the historical context that makes this possible and visited the sites where these pivotal people lived and those events occurred.

We also asked questions about the people, how they interact among themselves and with us and how they see themselves and are seen and finally how we see ourselves in that space. These questions are part of an ongoing investigation that helps establish our ideas of what a place is, who belongs there and why.

Our tour took us to well known cultural spaces such as La Casa Encendida and La Tabacalera but also to visit invisible spaces where communities gather and do work that has big impacts in the society at large. One of those spaces was La Eskalera Karakola, a feminist okupa whose groundbreaking anti-sexism and anti-homophobia work set the stage for what is now Orgullo Gay, one of the largest pride celebrations in the world.

This tour helped to bring the space and people to life. IFG is interested in exploring Madrid neighborhoods and communities to dive beneath the surface and bring context and meaning to your experience. And finally to give you the tools to decide how you want to be and interact with this larger reality.

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